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One of the questions I’m asked most often is “How much is a point or mile worth?” The answer varies from person to person, and depends on how well you can maximize a particular loyalty currency. Still, some rewards are clearly worth more than others — my goal is to give you a sense of how they stack up.

To give you some context, I’ve included my valuations from one year ago and from February. This month I boosted one hotel program thanks to a new award payment option, and I added a new airline program to the list. As always, you’ll find plenty of other program-related news in the What Changed/News column.

The Calculations

There isn’t a mathematical formula at work here. At some point I’d like to create a system that could calculate a precise value based on award availability, fees, award levels and ease of accrual, but for now these valuations are based on a combination of how much I would pay to buy points if given the opportunity, and the overall value I could get from redeeming them.

I encourage you to share your thoughts where you think I’m off base (and on point, no pun intended), and I’ll take TPG reader feedback into consideration when I update the list next month. This list doesn’t include every currency under the sun, and I’ll work to add more moving forward, so let me know which ones you’d like to see featured.

After a quiet January, February saw several major loyalty program developments. The new World of Hyatt has now launched, while Singapore Airlines announced plans to increase award rates later this month. Hilton’s new award payment option looks promising, and should make it easier to get a good return on Honors points moving forward. Finally, upon request from several readers, I added Cathay Pacific’s Asia Miles program to the list.

Movers and Shakers

Hilton’s new Points & Money option makes it easy to redeem small point balances.

Hilton Honors

February Value: 0.5 cents.March Value: 0.6 cents.Valuation: After Hilton announced several new program features in January, we’ve now been able to see Points & Money awards in action, and the outlook is good. These redemptions appear to offer a return of between 0.4 and 1.1 cents per point, which is mostly an improvement from my previous valuation. Best of all, you can book awards starting at just 5,000 points, so it will be easier to make use of small balances. That trend will continue in April when points pooling becomes available. After years of Hilton devaluations, these most recent changes mark a move in the right direction, although the removal of redemption categories gives Hilton flexibility to increase rates without notice.

Cathay Pacific’s loyalty program offers good value if you can avoid fuel surcharges.

Asia Miles

February Value: unlisted.March Value: 1.4 cents.Valuation: Cathay Pacific is renowned for offering impeccable first-class service, but Asia Miles and the Marco Polo frequent flyer program remain relatively unknown. That’s not a surprise, since the award charts, routing rules and booking protocol are so needlessly convoluted. Ticketing an Asia Miles award often requires a lot of time on the phone, and the variety of responses you’ll get from call center agents is likely to test your patience.

That said, this program offers excellent value if you’re willing to put in the hours. The award charts don’t have many sweet spots, but the ability to add stopovers and open jaws at no extra cost provides opportunities to book some truly exceptional itineraries, especially if you can avoid fuel surcharges. With all that in mind, I value these miles a little less than rewards from fellow Oneworld carriers American Airlines and British Airways. Look for a deep dive into the program and how to maximize Asia Miles later this month.

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Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

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The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers. Please view our advertising policy page for more information.

Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.